Joan Brady (1) (1939–)
Auteur de L'enfant loué
Pour les autres auteurs qui s'appellent Joan Brady, voyez la page de désambigüisation.
A propos de l'auteur
Crédit image: Photograph by Michael Trevillion
Œuvres de Joan Brady
Étiqueté
Partage des connaissances
- Nom canonique
- Brady, Joan
- Nom légal
- Brady Masters, Joan
- Autres noms
- Brady, Joan
- Date de naissance
- 1939-12-04
- Sexe
- female
- Nationalité
- USA
UK - Lieu de naissance
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Lieux de résidence
- San Francisco, California, USA
Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK - Études
- Columbia University
- Professions
- Dancer
- Relations
- Masters, Dexter (husband)
Masters, Alexander (son) - Courte biographie
- Joan Brady was born on 4 December 1939 in San Francisco, California, USA, daugther to Mildred Edie Brady and Robert A. Brady. She has one sister, Judy. She was a dancer with the San Francisco Ballet and the New York City Ballet, a story she tells in her highly-acclaimed autobiography The Unmaking of a Dancer. Then she went on to study philosophy at Columbia University in New York. In 1963, she married author Dexter Masters, her mother's secret lover. Together they had a son, Alexander Masters, who authored Stuart, A Life Backwards.
She currently lives in Oxford, England. She was the first woman to win the Whitbread Book of the Year Award (now Costa) with Theory of War, she is also the author of short stories, articles, reviews, and suspense novels.
Membres
Critiques
The Unmaking of a Dancer par Joan Brady
I've always liked stories and memoirs about people in environments like ballet, monasteries - the cloistered world of striving, the fascinating details - and this was satisfying. But the blurb on my edition really misrepresents the book. Yes, it's about her years in ballet, and how she eventually left it, but also about her unconventional family and her power struggles with her mother, who was quite a piece of work.
This novel had a good premise - greedy corporation doing dodgy science and little family business holds overlooked patent - corporate espionage & skulduggery ensues.
It's downfall however is that it made it not only overly complicated with a field of characters throughout three countries, but also overly unrealistic.
I tried hard to like it but it turned in to quite the chore to read and one of the few books I've read that's hard NOT to put down.
It's downfall however is that it made it not only overly complicated with a field of characters throughout three countries, but also overly unrealistic.
I tried hard to like it but it turned in to quite the chore to read and one of the few books I've read that's hard NOT to put down.
This book was so complicated, I don't even know where to start with a synopsis. David Marion is an ex-con who receives advance notice of a hit on his life. He escapes and learns that a mega-corporation, UCAI, was behind it. At the same time, Dr. Helen Freyl, who has a complicated past with David, learns that UCAI is trying to get their hands on a patent she holds on some honeybee venom and they'll stop at nothing to get their hands on it.
Let me say first of all that I received an ARC of this book from the publisher for review.
Now, this was really more like 2.5 stars for me, but I can't bring myself to round up.
This is a sequel to [b:Bleedout|2396415|Bleedout|Joan Brady|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51R8CVNQJRL._SL75_.jpg|947344], which I haven't read, but there was a pretty good explanation of what had happened previously, so I don't think I necessarily needed to read these in order.
Helen was my biggest problem. I could not bring myself to like her at all. She was a spoiled rich girl who treated the whole thing like a game until she realized that her own life might be at stake. I can't remember how many others had died at that point, but it was enough for me to think that this was an amazingly self-absorbed woman. She had to be at least firmly into her twenties to have her doctorate, but she tended to act more like a teenager. "Oh, let me smoke in this guy's car just to see if he'll say anything." "Oh, let me order the crazy-expensive caviar at this restaurant just to see if he'll say anything." She just liked to push her boundaries and see what she could get away with. She was a tiger while she was pushing away at someone, but the moment that someone pushed back, she was a thoughtless mess of need. I guess there's no turn-on like a guy with a spine, is there? I kept reading, thinking that she was just too stupid to live. She's picking a fight with someone over her hurt feelings as he's trying to save her life, clueless that he's even doing so. Self-absorbed and stupid. Not a winning combination for me.
The book took a long time to get going. There was too much background information. About half the book felt like set up, then by the time the action really got started, I had a pretty good idea of what was going on. Maybe that was on purpose, but it just felt like there should be more suspense in a thriller. Once I did reach that halfway point, I enjoyed things much more and would give the second half three stars. Unfortunately, that is where I got a little confused though. I was correct about part of what was going on, but it went a step further and I didn't quite follow. That could just be me.
I know this is an ARC and I should make allowances, but there were a few incorrect things that jumped out at me that I really hope get fixed by the final printing. First of all, the Smoky Mountains are in Tennessee, not West Virginia as one of the chapter headings states. There were more incorrect things in that chapter that I'm going to put down to David being a city boy. One other little thing that jumped out was the name SmithKleinGlaxo. That's all tangled up. It's GlaxoSmithKline. I would've missed that one if my uncle didn't work there. Things like that make me wonder about the research that went into the rest of the book.
A reader who isn't as dependent on likable characters as I am will probably enjoy this more than I did. There is a good story of industrial espionage and little guys vs. big corporations in here. It just didn't quite live up to the potential that I saw inside.… (plus d'informations)
Let me say first of all that I received an ARC of this book from the publisher for review.
Now, this was really more like 2.5 stars for me, but I can't bring myself to round up.
This is a sequel to [b:Bleedout|2396415|Bleedout|Joan Brady|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51R8CVNQJRL._SL75_.jpg|947344], which I haven't read, but there was a pretty good explanation of what had happened previously, so I don't think I necessarily needed to read these in order.
Helen was my biggest problem. I could not bring myself to like her at all. She was a spoiled rich girl who treated the whole thing like a game until she realized that her own life might be at stake. I can't remember how many others had died at that point, but it was enough for me to think that this was an amazingly self-absorbed woman. She had to be at least firmly into her twenties to have her doctorate, but she tended to act more like a teenager. "Oh, let me smoke in this guy's car just to see if he'll say anything." "Oh, let me order the crazy-expensive caviar at this restaurant just to see if he'll say anything." She just liked to push her boundaries and see what she could get away with. She was a tiger while she was pushing away at someone, but the moment that someone pushed back, she was a thoughtless mess of need. I guess there's no turn-on like a guy with a spine, is there? I kept reading, thinking that she was just too stupid to live. She's picking a fight with someone over her hurt feelings as he's trying to save her life, clueless that he's even doing so. Self-absorbed and stupid. Not a winning combination for me.
The book took a long time to get going. There was too much background information. About half the book felt like set up, then by the time the action really got started, I had a pretty good idea of what was going on. Maybe that was on purpose, but it just felt like there should be more suspense in a thriller. Once I did reach that halfway point, I enjoyed things much more and would give the second half three stars. Unfortunately, that is where I got a little confused though. I was correct about part of what was going on, but it went a step further and I didn't quite follow. That could just be me.
I know this is an ARC and I should make allowances, but there were a few incorrect things that jumped out at me that I really hope get fixed by the final printing. First of all, the Smoky Mountains are in Tennessee, not West Virginia as one of the chapter headings states. There were more incorrect things in that chapter that I'm going to put down to David being a city boy. One other little thing that jumped out was the name SmithKleinGlaxo. That's all tangled up. It's GlaxoSmithKline. I would've missed that one if my uncle didn't work there. Things like that make me wonder about the research that went into the rest of the book.
A reader who isn't as dependent on likable characters as I am will probably enjoy this more than I did. There is a good story of industrial espionage and little guys vs. big corporations in here. It just didn't quite live up to the potential that I saw inside.… (plus d'informations)
FYI - I wasn't thinking when I sent my request to Simon and Shuster to review the latest Jennifer Estep novel Venom, and totally forgot to put the authors name in the request. That is why I got a copy of this particular book to review. This is not my type of book, so I just want you readers to know that before I do the review. Anybody willing to come to Humber College or pay for shipping, this book is yours.
The Good Stuff
* Author builds up a convincing back story and keeps you guessing on what is going on
* Intelligent thriller with a timely topic
* The grandma is a feisty one
* You should probably read Bleedout first, as to understand some of the motivations of the characters
The Not so Good Stuff
* I really didn't like most of the characters
* Way too many characters and backgrounds, very hard to keep straight
* Story took a long time to get your attention, I honestly had a hard time trying not to put the book down, because I was lost. Quite a few times I was just going to put this down as DNF, but I am a stubborn one
Favorite Quotes/Passages
"And the more he thought about it, the more it seemed to him that Christ was an ill-tempered white man."
"It's employee joke that the letters NSA stand for "No Such Agency" and "Never Say Anything."
What I Learned
* Always to put the author's name in when requesting books for review
* Pharmaceutical companies are evil
* How to create an explosion -- read the first chapter and you will understand
Who should/shouldn't read
* Fans of Intrigue and mystery and industrial espionage
* I think John Grisham lovers would enjoy
* Not for those looking for a light read, you need to pay attention with this one (Hence why my Mommy brain had such a hard time)
2.5/5 Dewey's -- Please remember that this is based on MY enjoyment of the book and nothing against the author or their talent-- this is not my type of book so that affects the review -- if you see this Joan, nothing personal : )
I received this from Simon and Shuster in return for an honest review -- sorry guys, just didn't love this one… (plus d'informations)
The Good Stuff
* Author builds up a convincing back story and keeps you guessing on what is going on
* Intelligent thriller with a timely topic
* The grandma is a feisty one
* You should probably read Bleedout first, as to understand some of the motivations of the characters
The Not so Good Stuff
* I really didn't like most of the characters
* Way too many characters and backgrounds, very hard to keep straight
* Story took a long time to get your attention, I honestly had a hard time trying not to put the book down, because I was lost. Quite a few times I was just going to put this down as DNF, but I am a stubborn one
Favorite Quotes/Passages
"And the more he thought about it, the more it seemed to him that Christ was an ill-tempered white man."
"It's employee joke that the letters NSA stand for "No Such Agency" and "Never Say Anything."
What I Learned
* Always to put the author's name in when requesting books for review
* Pharmaceutical companies are evil
* How to create an explosion -- read the first chapter and you will understand
Who should/shouldn't read
* Fans of Intrigue and mystery and industrial espionage
* I think John Grisham lovers would enjoy
* Not for those looking for a light read, you need to pay attention with this one (Hence why my Mommy brain had such a hard time)
2.5/5 Dewey's -- Please remember that this is based on MY enjoyment of the book and nothing against the author or their talent-- this is not my type of book so that affects the review -- if you see this Joan, nothing personal : )
I received this from Simon and Shuster in return for an honest review -- sorry guys, just didn't love this one… (plus d'informations)
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Prix et récompenses
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Statistiques
- Œuvres
- 9
- Membres
- 521
- Popularité
- #47,687
- Évaluation
- 3.6
- Critiques
- 10
- ISBN
- 161
- Langues
- 10